Evidence to suggest vitamin D can prevent viral respiratory infections and lessen the severity if you do contract it

[Roostersmum2]

Just sharing this here for anybody who wasn't aware of the benefits of vitamin D in regards to respiratory infections. He knows what he's talking about

In summary, if you're not already - take vitamin D

We're taking 4000iu vitamin D daily w/ 1000iu vitamin C

If anyone is a smoker, btw, then STOP

Easier said than done for some unfortunately. As bad a habit as it is, cigarettes are crux for alot of people.

Somebody dear to me has significant mental health problems and smokes. It is a deeply entrenched addiction, going cold turkey during the most stressful period of their life will be tremendously distressing. They know they're at heightened risk and when people remind them about that it terrifies them. As much as they want to live, addiction is no walk in the park.

Cigarettes are more addictive than alcohol yet people seem to think it's as easy as just stopping.

For a small minority, maybe

No, you cannot absorb enough vitamin d from sunlight in the U.K. to last you through the Summer, naked or otherwise.

Vitamin d must also be consumed.

Ah that's interesting about the mushrooms being grown differently, and oily fish. And nakedness.

Well, if smoking is 14 x the risk as the UK govt is suggesting

• that's 1400 % increase

Time to bite the bullet

Vit D benefits, if any , are totally trivial compared to that

We have evolved - red haired people make their own Vitamin D. I wear factor 50 sunscreen every day as I work outdoors and have never been deficient. I take a general multivitamin each day.

We obviously didn’t walk around naked when pale skin evolved or we would all have frozen to death.

Previous studies about vitamins to avoid other diseases are inconclusive, or show say 20% lower risk
not 1400%

The actual NHS advice is here:

www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/vitamin-d/

Telling smokers to stop smoking now is like telling us fatties to lose weight - it’s incredibly hard or we wouldn’t be big because who wants to be fat? Yet the ITUs are full of overweight people. Our weight will come out as one of the main factors determining survival or not from severe cases of the virus in my opinion.

But here I am still planning a nice lunch.

Well then it does sound like a bit of a problem in the way our bodies are made or how much vitamin d we need. Most things we need we can get naturally without a supplement if we try hard enough.

Ive been wanting to start this.same thread. BAME people, older people, people who work indoors between 11 and 3 pm, night shift workers, people who are overweight or obese, menopausal women, women with thyroid problems all NEED more vitamin d than they can get through diet and brief periods of exposure to outside. My nhs consultant told me to take at least 2000iu.a day. That is 50mcg a day, which.is.far.more than the rec 10mcg you see on vitamin packets.
It is so important to get a bit of time in the sun every day and take supplement of at least 10mcg per day,but preferably More.
This will protect you.against covid 19 complications and protect your immune system.
Everyone in my family including the kids take vitamin d supplement at least weekly.

One can be significantly deficient in Vitamin D and it not effect reproduction (though, at severe deficiencies in women, it can disrupt menstrual cycles. I'm not sure if there is a similar issue for men).

Evolution doesn't tend to be very with these kinds of things, it more sticks stuff onto old stuff than, and the longer we've manipulated the environment from human days naked in Africa, the more our biological and other adaptations might not fit to any ideal. Our bodies tend to do okay getting on in less ideal and deficient circumstances until it all comes falling apart, usually in later life.

Well you can get enough vitamin D from sunlight in other parts of the world.

The problem is living in the U.K., which is not the environment humans evolved to live in.

And then fisherman in the past with a high marine diet would have been okay, but we’re no longer at a population level where everyone can be fed on that diet.

X post with babbles.

Being overweight makes it much harder for you to make sufficient vitamin d from exposure to sunlight. And overweight people expose less flesh to sunlight and take less exercise outdoors for a variety of reasons, poor mobility being an obvious one.

Cigarettes are more addictive than alcohol yet people seem to think it's as easy as just stopping

Where’s your evidence for this?

"Use of vitamin supplements has been found to be associated with increased morbidity in some studies. "

Just 'associated with' not causing I presume. That's just because less healthy people are probably taking them.
We've been told to take vitamin D for a while now as most of us are deficient. I made sure I had some when the pandemic looked to be heading for us.

DD recently had a blood test and was found to have abnormally low Vit D levels. She is now taking 25mg per day. We live abroad and whilst it’s not a sunny all year round country it’s definitely sunnier than England. I’ve read quite a lot since we found out and it’s more a case of being low in Vit D puts you at increased risk of respiratory infection so particularly at this time of year when most people won’t have felt the sun on their skin in months, if not taking the recommended daily dose they are likely to be low. The amount in regular multivitamins might be enough to keep people ticking over but once you are below the normal range it wouldn’t be enough to bring you back to normal.

"overweight people expose less flesh to sunlight "

I'm surprised by that. It needs to be over degrees and no wind for my to expose more than my face, but overweight people tend to be hot very easily.
I sometimes read we should go out and expose lower arms in spring and summer, but no way I could do that in this country.

I did read this however surely the Mediterranean counties ie Spain, Italy and also other countries like Iran would have been protected if vitamin D helped even a little?

@Roostersmum2 Have you had your Vitamin D levels checked before taking such a large dose? That’s 4 times the amount my teenage DD was prescribed and her reading was 21 - normal range being 30-50.

I wouldn’t wear shorts or a vest top. I always cover my shoulders and wear long trousers or a longish skirt/dress - and that is because I’m overweight. So I get that bit.

I’ve been wondering about this, as I saw various things over the last few weeks but some was getting mixed up with “fake news” type posts.

I’ve been taking a high dose on and off for ages anyway as I’ve sometimes been slightly deficient, but have been stricter now. We’ve all had what we think was CV a few weeks ago but I still worry I’ll get ill again. I’m taking vitamin C too - it’s not going to harm me so may as well.

I was wondering if one reason DH fared better is that he’s on a massive dose of D3 that you have to get from the pharmacy, as part of his treatment for osteoporosis.

It’s also a good extra incentive to make sure we get outside. Vitamin D deficiency is common in the U.K. anyway isn’t it. I wonder if that will contribute to a higher death rate :(

Overweight people dont tend to wear shorts or skimpy clothes, im overweight and 50 it stands to reaso I am going to expose less flesh than an 18 year old it is a societal norm!'nothing to do with how hot or cold I am

NHS guidelines for D levels and supplementation are woefully out of date with current research, and cover the prevention of rickets rather than other health problems associated with deficiency or sub optimal levels. There's various reliable research out there that recommends levels at anything between 120-150nmol, even 150-200nmol as being optimal, whereas some regional U.K. guidelines will class anything above 50nmol as sufficient.

It is safe to take 5000iu p/d (more if you're severely deficient) so long as you take sufficient co-factors: elemental magnesium and vitamin K2mk7. These work with D to enable efficient absorption, and prevent hypercalcemia which arises from 'overdosing' on vitamin D.

The research-based protocol I've followed is 100mcg of K2mk7 for every 1000iu of D, and a minimum of 500mg of elemental magnesium. Boron is also recommended for bone health.

There's zero evidence that D can cure corona or its complications but plenty to suggest that it bolsters your immunity and can lessen the incidence or severity of pneumonia.

That's my tuppence worth 😬